Nynaeve's Nameday
by EbonyBeach
Summary: Chapter 6 at last! I've been away too long, now I'M BACK! How Nyn and Lan celebrate her Nameday, then continuing into their lives living in the White Tower etc. plz R&R!
1. Notso Happy Nameday

Nynaeve and Lan (This doesn't actually fit in with any of the books so just bear with me a minute - Nyn and Lan are living in the White Tower, her block has broken and she is full Aes Sedai. It is about a year since Moiraine died, and Nyn has cured her husband of the affect her death had on him. Enjoy!)  
  
Diclaimer: I acknowledge that I own none of these characters or place names etc.  
  
"Al'Lan Mandragoran, come here right this minute," Nynaeve yelled. She was gripping her braid and it hurt, but she ignored the pain. She could not spare a shred of herself if she was to face Lan on her feet and win, which was of course what she intended. "What is the meaning of this?"  
  
"Of what, my dear?" he replied mildly, as ever his expression unreadable.  
  
"Of what? Of what? Of this, you wool-headed mule! Of this!" She thrust the piece of paper she was holding at him. As he reached out to take it she slapped him as hard as she could. It did not seem to affect him, which only made her angrier, if that was possible. His ice blue eyes might well have been observing someone who was making a pot of tea. But she met him stare for stare.  
  
"Nynaeve Sedai, may I ask what is wrong?" She was so intent on staring at her husband that she thought it was he who had spoken, and replied in fierce, low tones.  
  
"No you may bloody not -" It was only then that she realised that he never addressed her by that title. In a rush of utter fury, she broke off the stare and whirled to face whoever had spoken, intending to give them a piece of her mind. She was startled to see a Grey sister - Lilir was her name - staring at her, open mouthed in shock. Nynaeve thought of apologising, but before she could get a word in, the woman had walked off and out of sight around a corner. Bloody woman, thought Nynaeve. Well, she had better not expect an apology after behaving like that. Not that she would have got one in the first place anyway.  
  
When she remembered that she was in the middle of a staring contest with Lan, she turned back to find he had disappeared. Burn him! Burn the bloody man! How dare he walk away when she was in the middle of talking to him? How dare he? If she had been angry before, it was nothing to what she was now. She embraced the sweet flow of saidar without thought. She channelled as much as she could, until she thought the blood would boil in her veins, but she was too mad to care.  
  
Leaving? He was leaving was he? Off to fight his endless war against The Blight, he had written, though not in those exact words. He had also said something about how she should forget him. He had addressed it to Mashiara, his lost love. Well she was tired of being his lost love. She wanted to be his true love. She wanted him to love her now and forever. And he had hoped to sneak away without me noticing had he? She thought bitterly. Well, no such luck for him there.  
  
Holding up her skirts, she ran in the direction he had disappeared, startling the odd servant or novice that was hurrying about her duties. When she reached their bedroom in the Aes Sedai quarters of the White Tower, she found the door was locked. She presumed it was a padlock so she tried to channel earth, like Egwene did, but she could not find how it was constructed. Why has the fool man locked me out of my own room? She hammered on the wooden door until her knuckles bled, but she would not give up that easily. She thought of trying to burn the door down but that would not be taken kindly to if she managed to burn down the whole Tower.  
  
"Al'Lan Mandragoran, let me in this instant! As your wife I demand it of you! And you should obey me, as you are my Warder, or had you forgotten that? I think maybe you need reminding, as you seemed to think that you could just leave whenever it pleased -" She was flung forward as the door opened inwards, but Lan caught her in his strong arms and she was forced to take a deep breath as she looked around their once plain bed chamber.  
  
Candles covered the table and dressing table and hung in brackets along the walls, giving off faint flowery aromas. The curtains were closed and so the room was bathed only in flickering candle light. The carpet and bed were covered in red flower petals, though where he had got those from at this time of year she didn't want to ask.  
  
For a moment she was too stunned to speak. She realised Lan was still holding her and quickly brushed him off, but it was an effort - though she didn't let it show of course; she had suddenly gone very weak at the knees. She forced herself to look into his beautiful stony face. He was just staring intently at her, expression unreadable.  
  
And looking into those sun-freezing eyes, those heart-freezing eyes, her grasp on the True Source slipped. She wanted to show defiance, show him she was not at all amused with his idea of a joke, but she found she could not. She realised she could not have moved a muscle even if Moghedien decided to walk in at that very moment and kill her. Well, maybe Nynaeve could have moved then, but nothing short of that Forsaken witch could have budged her an inch.  
  
His voice snatched her out of her thoughts. "My heart, is it not your nameday today?" It took a moment for the words to register. The amount of emotion in his voice startled her. He sounded... Happy about something. And there was also tenderness. So much love. So much, she actually forgot to be angry. All that filled her thoughts was Lan, his voice, his touch, his face, his body, his smell.  
  
"I..." She considered the date. Her brain did not seem to be working properly, but she got there in the end. "Yes... I think it is. How -" She took a few deep breaths, pushing the fog in the shape of her husband to the back of her mind. Well, she tried. "How do you know?" She managed eventually.  
  
"How I know is not important. What is important is that we celebrate. Thom!" From behind the curtains stepped Thom Merrilin, two cups of wine in one hand and his harp in the other. He flourished his gleeman's cloak, coloured patches fluttering, as he handed them their wine. "Thom has agreed to play us a little music." And with that the old musician went and sat down in a padded chair outside their room. A slow, pretty tune began to play.  
  
"I..." Nynaeve was about to say that it was a little unfair to make Thom sit out in the corridor all night, but then she realised what kind of "celebrating" Lan meant. She covered her stumble by hiding her face in her wine cup. She hoped her husband would just think she had forgotten what she was going to say.  
  
When she had had a few sips of wine, she remembered she was supposed to be shouting now, accusing him of leaving, of fighting his death battle, of forgetting her. But somehow she could not bring herself to be angry. Light, this fool man has scrambled my brains! She thought. I am el'Nynaeve Mandragoran, not some calf-eyed, love sick girl who is not even old enough to braid her hair! What has got into me?  
  
Instead she said "Why did you leave that note? Are you planning this to be our last night together?" Even if she could not be angry, she could still make her voice hard and cold.  
  
In reply he laughed. He actually laughed at her! "My dear, I am not leaving. I would never leave you, even if the Dark One himself tried to draw me away. That note was a . diversion, shall we say. I knew it would keep you out of the way while I had things prepared. I think I underestimated your determination." He knew better than to say her anger. "I did not plan on your coming up here so fast. No matter. You're here now." He set his wine cup down, then took hers and put that aside as well. Then her took her hands in his and gently led her towards the bed. She followed without thinking; her mind was somewhere else.  
  
When she had regained her sense of self, she stopped dead and pulled her hands from his. He had certainly begun to cover his emotions up again - rebuilding his fortress walls was a better way to describe it, the same fortress walls that Nynaeve had grown her creepers into; he didn't look at all surprised. "Let me get this straight. You frighten me half to death with a note saying you're leaving," she swallowed hard and felt her cheeks colouring slightly; she did not like admitting her feelings - saying she was scared of his leaving was the simple truth. It showed how much he had changed in her. She carried on regardless, though. "You walk out on me in the middle of an argument, embarrassing me in front of others." There had only been the one woman, but it was only a slight exaggeration. "You lock me out of my room, and let me hammer with my hands until they bleed. " Saying that reminded her of how much her knuckles were hurting, but she ignored it. "And now you tell me that it was all a joke, and that -"  
  
Suddenly she felt Lan's lips on hers, his hands all over her body, her feet dangling a foot off the ground. And that was the end of her anger. It was the end of all thought.  
  
Some considerable time later - Lan's kisses were thorough enough to make you lose all track of time - she found she was sitting on the bed, her head against his chest, breathing heavily. She realised she was not surprised to find he was breathing normally. She didn't think anything could surprise her about Al'Lan Mandragoran anymore. He seemed almost not human. Well, he is not, she thought, laughing silently to herself. He cannot possibly be. He is far too different from anyone I've ever met before to even be considered human.  
  
"What were you saying?" he asked her.  
  
"You know, I can't seem to remember!" she replied, smiling up at him. He smiled back. She thought some of the angles and planes of his face were softening. At least they did when he smiled. "I think it was something about how much you infuriate me and how I would like to wring your neck for being so gorgeous -" She blushed. She had not been meaning to say that at all.  
  
He only laughed softly though and started fiddling with her braid. "You know," he said quietly, "you should wear your hair down more often. I know you like your braid so you can try and tug it out at the roots when you're angry." Her half-hearted glare did not affect him and he continued as if she was not trying to look daggers at him. ". But it is so long, and dark, and it smells so gorgeous that it would be like wearing a silk shawl on your back."  
  
She twisted 'round so she was facing him, though still sat on his lap, and considered him. "Yes, you're right, I do like my braid," was all she said, after a moment. But she was not against the idea at all. All his compliments were truly flattering but she would have loved him to actually ask if he could take it out. The thought of his strong fingers running through her hair made her heart flutter.  
  
Suddenly he reached out towards her and touched a ring that hung around her neck. It was the ring of Malkieri kings, and as the last surviving Lord of the Seven Towers, it was his. Well, it was hers now. He had given it to her as a gift in Shienar, before they went their separate ways, well over two years ago now. Sometimes, that ring had been all that kept her going. She wore it on a fine gold chain now, nestled between her breasts, next to her heart. Her low-necked dress of fine green satin displayed it hanging there. The fact that Lan's hand was touching her where the ring hung did nothing to quiet the butterflies in her stomach.  
  
On a sudden impulse, she reached out and traced all the planes of his face. His nose, his eyes, his cheekbones, his ears, until finally letting her fingers rest on his lips. She realised his hands were doing some tracing of their own, and she found she was not at all embarrassed by it.  
  
Keeping her fingers on his lips, she put her thumb under his chin and pulled his head forward, so she was staring him straight in the eye. With her other hand, she stroked back the strands of hair that had fallen over his face. His wandering hands stopped on her slim waist. He did not move a muscle, but being a Warder, the finest Warder there was of course, it was easy for him to remain like that for hours at a time. She stopped stroking his face and they were still. For how long, Nynaeve couldn't tell. They just sat, eyes drinking each other's souls, whilst the sweet harp music played, and all else was forgotten.  
  
Then, ever so slowly, Lan moved his hands up, over her slim hips and waist, outlining her breasts, tracing her figure. Then his hands disappeared behind her back and she felt a slight pull of her hair. In a matter of seconds, it was spilling down her back in dark waves, over her shoulders, covering Lan's arms as he pulled them from behind her.  
  
"How -" she breathed, astonished. "How did you do that so quickly? It takes me much longer than that."  
  
"I don't practice on anyone, if that's what you mean," he replied, smiling. For some reason that smile made her suspicious. She took her hands from his face and the front of her dress came down! How in the light did he do that? As she fumbled to get it back up, flushing crimson, he took her delicate hands in his strong ones, and said "There is no need to do that." He brushed her lips with his, then smiled a small smile. "Happy Nameday," he whispered.  
  
As if his words were a signal, Nynaeve threw herself at him, so overwhelmed by him, by the love he showed for her, by the love she had for him. The force was enough, unexpected as it was, to knock him backwards. They collapsed onto the bed, she lying on top of him and sobbing uncontrollably with happiness, he laughing with her, though part of his amusement came from how his wife - tough as she liked to think she was - was now crying hysterically into his chest.  
  
Light, but he was the most beautiful man she had ever seen! And so strong, so loving, so sensitive. Funny that. A few months ago she would have said he was the least sensitive man in the world. It amazed her how her opinion had changed by a few kisses and a couple of heart melting words. Well, there was a lot more to it than that. Marriage, for one. Then him being her Warder, for another. The list went on.  
  
Lost in her reverie, she did not realise her husband was talking to her, until he touched her shoulder.  
  
"Wh... What?" she asked, startled.  
  
"What were you thinking about just then?" he answered. She hated it when one of her questions was answered by another.  
  
"What were you saying before?" she demanded, more strongly.  
  
"I was wondering whether you were ever going to let me undress you and get you into bed," he said, smiling.  
  
For some reason, she did not think that was it, but she did not really want him to bring up the fact that she had cried to him. Even tears of joy, were they heard about throughout the Tower, could ruin her reputation. el'Nynaeve Mandragoran never cried. Never! "Let you undress me? I do not think so. I have never let a man undress me in my life and I am not about to start now. I am more than capable thank you very much!" The irony of it was that she had never had a man offer to undress her before, and so she did it herself because she had to. That remark was purely to make Lan want to do it himself. She had no objection whatsoever to the notion.  
  
"Well then, I think now is a perfect time to start," he said, and with that he grabbed the front of her dress and pulled it all the way down.  
  
Shocked, she stared at him. Then a grin began spreading over her face. "It is, is it? You think so?" She reached for Saidar and wove flows of Air to strip his shirt off. She channeled again and took off the leather cord that held his long dark hair, graying slightly at the temples, so it fell forward over his face. Then she wove thin flows, like fingers, to brush through it. He tried to speak, but she gagged him with more Air. He tried to move and she bound him to the bed. When she was happy that all he could do was sit and look at her, she wriggled out of her dress. She smoothed her shift, and brushed her hair. When she was sure she looked presentable - well, as presentable as she could clad only in her shift - she unwound the flows binding her husband to the bed.  
  
He stood up straight away, as though he had been straining to do so while he was bound. He was so handsome, so strong, yet also graceful. Graceful as a lion is graceful. He reached her in a few quick strides and immediately they were lost together in that never-ending, always-so-special kiss.  
  
She felt his fingers running through her hair and it was every bit as heart fluttering as she had thought it would be. She heard every single note of Thom's harp, and the music seemed to enrich her soul. She tasted Lan's mouth and that sweetness made her tongue seem on fire. She breathed in his smell, and it made her head spin even more.  
  
"You," Lan said in a pause "are the most beautiful, intelligent, creative, sweet, loving woman I have ever come across. You kiss like the very earth depended on it. After seeing the way your clothes cling to every curve of your dazzling figure, I would like to know how those Domani women got their reputation. They have not the slightest patch on you. You are - " The easiest way to shut him up was for Nynaeve to put a hand over his mouth.  
  
"I love you." It was all she could say. "I love you. I love you." she trailed off. Her mind had suddenly gone completely blank, and with it her control over her body. She felt her knees give way, and Lan's arms lifting her onto the bed. The rest of the night was a blur. 


	2. My Place Is Here

When she awoke, however, the memories came flooding back. Lan kissing her. Lan touching her. Lan whispering to her. She felt his arm around her shoulders and snuggled into his chest. He tightened his grip, indicating he was awake.  
  
"Good morning," she said softly.  
  
"Yes, I think it is," he replied, smiling down at her. His long dark hair was entwined with hers and as she reached up to stroke a few lose strands off his face he kissed her fingertips. She left her hand on his lips and pulled herself up so she was sat on top of him. "A very good morning indeed."  
  
She replaced her hand with her lips.  
  
"That," she said a few moments later, "was the best nameday present I've ever had. I love you al'Lan Mandragoran, with every fibre of my being, and I will forever. That I swear to." She kissed him softly again. "Well? Have you nothing to say to me in return?"  
  
"I. love you, my heart, and words can not even come close to how I feel about you. el'Nynaeve Mandragoran, I love you. You cultivated your beautiful flowers where I once grew boulders and stones. All my life I have felt my only place was with my sword, protecting those I swore to protect, saving those I swore to save. Now I see clearly where I belong."  
  
"And where is that?" she asked sweetly.  
  
"You mean you don't already know?" he said, grinning. Then his face sobered somewhat. "My place..." he kissed her tenderly, "...is..." he kissed her again, "...here."  
  
As he kissed her once more, she stretched her arm around his neck and deepened it. His lips were so soft. The first boy she had ever kissed - well, he had kissed her - was a drunken from Watch Hill who had come down to Emond's Field for Bel Tine. His mouth had tasted of old ale and she had given him a severe beating with a stick for trying it on. She had been fourteen at the time, and guessed he was about twenty. But everything was so different with Lan. He was so mature.  
  
Yes, well he is old enough to be your father, said a familiar little voice.  
  
Shut up, she told it. That's completely different. I love him, and he loves me, and we're married now. It's only a few years. It has had no affect on us so far, why did you bring it up now? She realised she was talking to the voice, and quickly shut it off to the back of her mind.  
  
Lan was all she needed. He had said she was all he needed. They had each other and that was that. "Are you happy?" Lan whispered, as he kissed her neck.  
  
"I have never, never been happier," she replied. "Are you?"  
  
"I suppose," he said with a sudden smile.  
  
"You suppose?" she said, mocking anger. "You mean you don't know? Men!"  
  
He laughed and that made her laugh, simply because it was such a rare sound to come out of his mouth. She loved it when he smiled and laughed. He was such a different man around her. When he had first admitted his love for her, what seemed like an age ago when he and Moiraine had taken herself and the others away from The Two Rivers, she had secretly vowed to change him from the heartless man he had been. She had wanted a husband who loved, cherished and swore to protect her, not a man who claimed all he could offer her was a black widow's dress.  
  
Well, she thought to herself, I suppose he has changed. But even if he hadn't, I would still love him with all of my heart, for all of time.  
  
Looking back to when she had been Wisdom of Emond's Field, she had thought she could change boy's attitudes towards pranking and joking simply by paddling their bottoms. Her laughter subsided slightly when she realised no woman could change a man.  
  
Lan had changed because of her, because he loved her and wanted her to love him. Whether he knew it or not, he had become a completely different person, simply because he wanted to. That thought gave her heart a sense of something so great, she could not say what, something so strong that the sweetness of Saidar could never even come close to achieving.  
  
She felt herself on the edge of tears again and fought hard to hold them in. The power of his love for her was completely overwhelming. The golden veins from the bond of Aes Sedai to Warder pulsed with so much tenderness that she thought she would get a headache. They were always beating burnished gold, of course, but last night and this morning they had seemed to increase in strength a tenfold.  
  
Quickly thinking of happier things - well, there was no happier feeling than this, but at least less overwhelming thoughts - she composed herself. She kissed Lan on the lips once more before getting up and putting on her sapphire-blue robe.  
  
"Don't do that," he said from the bed.  
  
"Why ever not? I cannot go and order us breakfast wearing only my skin!"  
  
"Breakfast? You mean lunch." She stared at him incredulously. Surely it was not that late. Before she could speak, however, he continued. "It's just such a shame to see you covered up, after I have seen you completely unclothed." She paused in fastening the tie. He went on. "Nynaeve, you are beautiful beyond belief. I... Why are you laughing?"  
  
She had not realised she was until he told her. She walked over to the bed and sat down so she fitted nicely into the contours of his curved body.  
  
"I was not laughing at you, my heart. Just at life. Just because I'm happy." She kissed his cheek and rose to leave once more.  
  
"Nynaeve?" She turned. "Don't be gone too long."  
  
She kissed her finger tips and blew across them, kind of like the Sea Folk goodbye. "I will not. I love you, al'Lan Mandragoran."  
  
As she left she added to herself, "with all of my heart, forever." That was one of their wedding vows. The only one, actually, that resembled any she had heard before. The Wave Mistress of the Sea Folk ship they had been married on had insisted on the full ceremony, even though Nynaeve and Lan weren't A'than Miere. The other vows were somewhat more... personal. Even thinking about those made her face turn crimson and her heart flutter so wildly she thought it would escape out of her mouth.  
  
Caught up in her reverie, she didn't realize she had walked straight past three Accepted (novice were not allowed in the Aes Sedai living quarters) who she could have ordered to get food for her and Lan. On bumping into a fourth, she quickly told the girl to get her some peaches and a loaf of bread and some meat, then spun around to find herself face to face with Egwene al'Vere.  
  
"Good morning Mother," Nynaeve said hastily. "How may I help you?"  
  
"Do you know what time it is Nynaeve?" she replied, a small smile touching her lips.  
  
"Erm. sometime around noon?" she guessed.  
  
"It is a quarter to two, for your information. Does that ring any bells?"  
  
"Quarter to two. Light!" Nynaeve caught herself just in time. "Sorry, Mother. I have a novice class at two. Oh, Light! Sorry. May I be excused?"  
  
"Yes, of course," the young Amyrlin replied, as Nynaeve dropped a curtsy and rushed off. Egwene still had not got used to apologies from her once-so-stubborn friend from the Two Rivers. I guess that's what a man does to a woman, she thought to herself, smiling.  
  
Nynaeve flew into her room just as Lan was about to leave to look for her. She was in such a rush she didn't see him until she was lying on top of him on the floor. Scrambling up, she muttered "Sorry," and tore off her robe, searching the wardrobe for a shift and dress.  
  
"Fool man," she called to her husband as she pulled her pale blue, low necked dress over her head. "I have a novice class in ten minutes. Did you not think to remind me?" She untucked her hair from the back of her dress and hastily began brushing it. "And why did you have to undo my hair last night? It is so much easier to manage when it is in a braid. Well?"  
  
She looked up to see him staring at her, shock, hurt and amusement on his face all at the same time. She sighed and walked over to him, standing on tip toes to kiss him lightly on the lips. He put his arms around her waist and held her close.  
  
"Oh Lan," she said to his chest. "I'm sorry." She felt his hands move up her body and her hair being gently tugged. "What. What are you doing?"  
  
He only smiled at the top of her head. About a minute later, he spun her around so she was looking into the mirror. Her hair was perfectly braided. It hung down her back, to well below her waist.  
  
"I have many talents you don't know about," her husband said. He kissed the top of her head and smiled a smile that lit his usually icy blue eyes.  
  
"I'm sure you do," she answered, smiling back.  
  
There was a knock at the door and in came the Accepted girl carrying their food on a gold tray.  
  
Nynaeve untangled herself from Lan's strong arms and took the tray with gratitude. She hadn't realised she was hungry until now. She put the tray on the table and motioned for the girl to go. As soon as she heard the door click shut, she put some warm bread into her mouth, followed by two slices of meat. She gulped down some cool water and bit into one of the peaches.  
  
Realising Lan was still stood by the mirror, she threw him one of the orangey fruits. He caught it swiftly and threw it straight back. It hit her on the chest, dripping juice down her dress. He laughed as she glared at him. "What was the meaning of that?" she asked, desperately trying to control her anger. "You've completely ruined my dress!"  
  
"I thought you could do with the nourishment more than I," he shrugged. Then he walked over to her and started unbuttoning her dress. He got a pale pink one out, with tiny embroidered Lover's Knots on the skirt and sleeves. She laughed at the tickling feeling when he pulled the ruined one over her head, and again when he put on the clean one. Laughter always seemed to make her frustration disappear. She finished off the rest of the food and water, then wiped her mouth on a napkin.  
  
"I must go now," she told her husband. "I have a bunch of snotty nosed infants to teach."  
  
"Now now my dear, it was not so long ago that you were one of them," he replied.  
  
She glared half-heartedly at him. "I was not! I'll have you know I rose straight to Accepted, al'Lan Mandragoran. And anyway, they are infants as far as I'm concerned. Some of them couldn't even heal a graze on the knee, for the Light's sake! Sorry," she added, when she realised she was sounding like she was berating him. "I seem to be saying that word a lot today."  
  
He just laughed and kissed her cheek. "Have fun."  
  
She stuck her tongue out at him as she left. 


	3. Ripples And Dreams

Hey guys, thanx for reviewin Nyn's Nameday, its a big help!! Soz but this is another quite short chapter - i don't have 2 much spare time and most of it goes into my writing! anyway, enough from me! Enjoy! Hana X  
  
Agathie, stop that this instant!" Nynaeve yelled at the round faced girl who had begun to fly objects around the classroom. "The purpose of today's lesson is to make you able to Heal injuries, not cause them!"  
  
A few of the girls had succeeded in curing the rashes Nynaeve inflicted on the unwilling volunteers, but out of a group of twelve, four was not good enough. And the rashes were only mild ones - she could hardly give one of her students a serious disease such as Cowthroppe - so all in all Nynaeve was not happy.  
  
"Now, watch closely how I weave the flows," she instructed, trying not to sound as impatient as she felt.  
  
After her first teaching lessons in the White Tower, she had been severly spoken to about her temper infront of the students. Even though she still maintained that the novices had deserved their month doing laundry for not being able to do what she told them, she had orders from Egwene to control her anger when teaching. It was just not proper for an Aes Sedai to have a temper. Even so, Nynaeve could not help being irritated when forced to put up with stupid behaviour.  
  
She took all five Powers and slowly knitted them together. "This is a simple technique, but effective. It can be used for most mild skin irritations." She let the flows vanish and said, "Did you catch that?" Murmurs answered her. "Good. Now divide into pairs and practise. The one who is not weaving, watch closely and tell your partner where she is going wrong. If there are any problems, ask. Do not try to alter the weave, or do anything differently. Got that?" More murmurs. "Begin."  
  
She walked between the girls, correcting and praising where necessary. At five minutes to three, she stopped them and instructed them to tidy the room before the lesson ended. "Agathie and Deanda, I said stop! Did you not hear me? Or are you deliberately -" She cut off, slamming a shield of air around herself. She had seen the weaves before she realised what was happening, but now it was too late. "Blood and ashes, girl, what are you trying to do? Did I not clearly tell you not to change the flows? Well?"  
  
Shaking with rage, she bent down to the nearest novice who was lying on the floor, covered in large red boils. Putting her hands on the girl's blonde head, she wove much more complicated flows and immediately the boils were replaced by clear white skin. A few of the girls were crying, as their skin suddenly erupted into huge warts and blistery boils.  
  
"I d-didn't mean t-to," wept the round faced girl, Agathie. "I-I just l-lost control and th-then I saw a. l-like a r-ripple on a p-pool." She broke down into wracking sobs.  
  
"Fool! Do you even know what you did? You inverted the flows. I'm surprised you didn't burn yourself out, channeling that much of the Power. You've probably infected half the Tower! Well done!" She grated sarcastically. Of course, since she was weak and inexperienced, the girl had not done too much damage. If it had been Nynaeve who had inverted those same flows, all of Tar Valon would have been sprouting blisters and warts. However, like Nynaeve, all the Sisters and probably most of the Accepted would have shielded themselves as soon as they felt the flows.  
  
She Healed Agathie last - it served her right, behaving like a ninny - then quickly ordered the girls back to their rooms and went to find the extent of the damage. The corridors were littered with servants and novices, all of which were being or had been Healed. Passing windows, she saw Warders and boys in training quickly being tended to. Fool girl! Blood and ashes, she could have killed herself! Why won't they listen? Healing is not a thing to be played with! Fool!  
  
She Healed numerous people whom she passed on her way to the Aes Sedai quarters near the top of the Tower. Her first thought once she realised what had happened had been of Lan. She had looked for him in the Warder practise yards but could not see him. If anything has happened to him, I'll kill bloody Agathie, she thought.  
  
When she reached her room, however, she was so relieved to see he was unharmed and so exhausted from Healing and running all the way to the top of the White Tower, she collapsed into his arms and he had to carry her to the bed and lie her down.  
  
"What's happened? What's the matter?" He asked, concern filling his voice.  
  
She tried to clear her head, but fatigue closed her eyelids. "I.it was. Agathie. ripples. inverted the flows." She finally gave up as sleep washed over her.  
  
^*o*^ ^*_*^ ^*0*^ ^*y*^ ^*o*^ ^*_*^ ^*0*^ ^*y*^ ^*o*^ ^*_*^ ^*0*^ ^*y*^ ^*o*^ ^*_*^  
  
She woke to find Lan staring down at her, stroking her hair. She also noted that it was unbraided again. What is my husband's obsession with my hair? She laughed silently to herself, but stopped because it hurt her head.  
  
"I. Lan. my head." she groaned, squeezing his hand.  
  
"Ssh now, my heart. Lie still." He leaned in and kissed her cheek lightly. "It's ok." He gently closed her eyelids. She did not protest. She was still too tired to care. Sleep came again quickly, to the sound of Lan whispering and stroking her hair again, like her mother used to do when she was little. But that was a long time ago now. a long, long time ago.  
  
Nynaeve had strange dreams, of golden crowns and hills where butterflies flocked in their thousands, rustling her long skirts, weaving through her hair that flowed down her back, blowing in the wind. She dreamed of lakes and seven tall towers. She dreamed of babes. In every dream there was a babe. Always the same one, with Lan's blue eyes and her dark hair. She was such a beautiful babe but she never stirred. Nynaeve cradled her in her arms, but she never moved a muscle. She just lay there, whilst Nynaeve cried, hot tears rolling down her cheeks. Lan was there too, but he did not cry. And somehow, Lan not crying made her scared, and so she called to him, but he did not come. And then there were the golden crowns again, and the hills, and the butterflies, and then the blue-eyed babe.  
  
Nynaeve woke again and immediately flung herself into Lan's awaiting embrace, sobbing her heart out. "She w-was such a b-beautiful b-babe," she wailed. "B-but she was. d-dead! She w-was dead, and I-I. I just c-couldn't do anything! Oh Lan, s-she was so. so beautiful!"  
  
"Ssh, ssh, my dear," he murmured into her hair. She was so small, so fragile, so vulnerable. And she was his. His to love. His to protect. "Everything will be okay. I love you. Ssh. I love you."  
  
But Nynaeve's sobbing did not cease. She shook violently and cried on for hours, no matter how he soothed and rocked her. The memory of those glazed blue eyes, so like Lan's, gave her visions of staring into her husband's eyes, whilst he lay there, as dead as the babe.  
  
"I d-don't want you t-to die," she cried.  
  
"I will not die. I am here. It was a dream, my heart, just a nightmare. Oh, Nynaeve, my love, dry your tears. Come on now, come on. Ssh."  
  
And so, eventually, she found herself once more tear-free, though her head ached and her throat was dry.  
  
"It was all so real," she whimpered into her husband's chest. "It was like I actually held her in my arms. I could feel the wind in my hair, and smell the flowers and the grass. It was so real."  
  
"All that is real is you and I, here, together. Dreams cannot touch you. I will not hurt you. There is nothing here that can harm you. Be still, my heart, and think of happier things."  
  
And so they lay there together, Lan cradling his fragile wife, Nynaeve just feeling the protection he gave, for an eternity. Neither spoke. They needed no words to convey their thoughts. Love; bright, shimmering gold, pulsed along the veins of the bond, from Aes Sedai to Warder, and back again. Lan was right. Dreams could not hurt her. Lan certainly would not hurt her. So why did she feel something in the pit of her stomach? She could not say whether it was unease, fear, confusion, or something above feeling. But there was definitely something there. Well, she thought, that certainly cannot harm me, unless I am coming down with a disease. She thought that unlikely.  
  
"Are you alright?" Lan asked her.  
  
She realised she had been stroking her stomach and quickly stopped. "I. Yes, I am alright. A little tired, but I'll live." She smiled weakly.  
  
"Good. I was so proud of you today, what you did about that novice girl and her inverting the weaves. I understand little of this such, but from what the Amyrlin told me, it was quite a task clearing up afterwards. I hear you did your bit with the Healing."  
  
"Egwene was here? When? What did she say? Ohh." She cut off, putting a hand to her head. Speaking quickly like that did nothing for the pounding.  
  
"Yes she was here, and I could not get her to leave until she was sure you were ok. She is a very caring young woman, quite protective of her Daughters, and I think you come very near the top of the list. As to what she said." he looked thoughtful for a second, as though he was trying to decide exactly what to say. But it was gone so quickly, Nynaeve thought she had probably imagined it. "I think her first concern was your health, naturally, but she is the Amyrlin after all, and so she told me to tell you that - when you are fit and healthy, of course - that you need to visit her to sort out exactly what happened this morning. It seems there is a lot of paperwork involved." He glanced down at his wife, and smiled, mainly to reassure her. "But she will have to wait until you are well. Should I send for someone to help with your headache?"  
  
Nynaeve shook her head, or tried to - she groaned as a fresh burst of pain tried to rip her head apart. Instead, she flopped back onto the pillows, and motioned for Lan to lie next to her. He obliged, and she snuggled up to him. "I think I just need a little more sleep," she attempted, but everything after "just" was swallowed by a huge yawn. She yawned again, then turned it into a sigh, which disappeared into a moan at her headache.  
  
"I think maybe you do," he said. He glanced down at her and smiled a small smile. She had already dropped off. "Sleep well," he whispered into her hair. "May your dreams be dreams of happiness, and of love. Nothing can harm you. Nothing can harm you now..." 


	4. Two Heartbeats

Chapter 4  
  
Lan was already up and dressed when she woke the next morning. She smelled honey and porridge as he brought a covered tray to her. She began to get up, ignoring the terrible pain in her head, but he laid the tray down and put his hands on her shoulders.  
  
"The Amyrlin said you need to rest, my dear," he said, love and worry shining in his bright blue eyes. Nynaeve wanted to tell him that she was fine, to stop him worrying. But, bound by the Oath Rod, she couldn't.  
  
"Oh Lan, I have the most dreadful headache," she whimpered, putting a hand to her forehead. "It seems to have increased in strength a ten fold. And my stomach feels... strange."  
  
He looked at her for what seemed like an age. "You will spend today in this bed, and tomorrow as well. I will not have you harming yourself even more."  
  
It was easier for her to agree than to argue. Maybe she did just need rest. But something told her the feeling in the bottom of her stomach was nothing to do with yesterday's ordeal.  
  
"Oh, that reminds me," Lan said, standing up and walking to the wardrobe. He rummaged through one of the drawers and brought out a small, square-shaped box. "I was out looking for a Nameday present for you, and I met a man who had been to some of the lands over the Aryth Ocean, or so he said." He walked back to the edge of the bed and knelt beside her. "He told me a traditional engagement custom over there is the gift of a ring from the groom to the bride. I know we have already been married, but." Nynaeve gasped as he opened the box to reveal a gold band, with a pearly white moonstone half the size of her little finger nail encrusted into it. "Nynaeve al'Meara, will you marry me? Again?" He added, with a smile.  
  
Nynaeve was so shocked all she could do was stare at him. "I. Lan." He took her left hand in one of his and placed the ring on her fourth finger. It fitted like it belonged there. "Yes. I. Yes! Oh, Lan," she said, squeezing his hand. She felt a single tear run down her cheek, and the threat of more. "I love you so much," she murmured, as he pulled her into a hug so tight she thought her ribs would crack. Another tear fell, followed by more, until she was sobbing into his shoulder. He rocked her back and forth, stroking her hair, telling her how much he loved her.  
  
A knock at the door brought a small yelp from Nynaeve, and she hurriedly wiped her eyes on a handkerchief. When Lan was certain she thought she looked presentable - in his opinion she always looked gorgeous, even with red eyes and a snuffling nose - he opened the door to reveal Elayne, stunningly regal in a lace necked gown of dark crimson silk.  
  
She gave him a small smile, and waved her hand, gesturing for him to leave. He raised his eyebrows at Nynaeve, who raised hers in return with a smile, and leaned in towards Elayne, whispering "Nynaeve is very tired. I do not want you adding to her fatigue, whatever your business." He said it is a friendly voice, but Elayne knew he would take any action necessary - even to the Queen of Andor! - if he found Nynaeve in a worse state than he left her.  
  
He walked back to his wife on the bed and leaned over her. Looking seriously into her eyes, dark swirling pools, he said, "Listen to me and heed what I say. You are not to leave this bed - for any reason - and as soon as you feel tired you are to ask Elayne to leave. If you get stressed, or your headache worsens, you are to ask Elayne if she can fetch you a sleeping potion, a glass of water, a cold cloth to wrap around your temples. Whatever you need. Do not -"  
  
His lips were shushed in a kiss. With a sombre expression on her face, Nynaeve said, "Lan, do not worry yourself so. I will be okay." She grinned suddenly, then winced ever so slightly at her headache. "Whatever the Queen of Andor can't summon I am sure I do not need. Where will you be, if I need you?"  
  
"I think I shall go down to the practise yards. Send someone immediately if you want me. I will drop everything for you. Understand?"  
  
She kissed him again, soft and sweet, not too deep that he knew she would be able to pull out. Indeed she did, saying "I understand, heart of my heart. I love you, and I will heed you because it is what you want."  
  
"I love you, Nynaeve," he replied, with a final brush on the lips. And with that he swept past Elayne and was gone.  
  
If it was possible of the former Wisdom of Emond's Field, Elayne thought she was making calf eyes at her husband's retreating back. The Queen of Andor shook her head and went to sit on Nynaeve's bed.  
  
"How are you? I mean, it must be bad if Lan is fussing like that," she asked.  
  
The woman in the bed sighed and sank back onto her pillows. "You would think I was on the edge of death, the way he carries on. It's not that I mind - it's really quite flattering that he cares so much - but. oh, Elayne, truth to tell, it's not Lan that's bothering me. I've been feeling. strange lately. And before you say anything." she said, seeing Elayne was about to interrupt, ".I don't think it's anything to do with what happened yesterday. I mean, I just have this strange feeling in the pit of my stomach. I." she sighed again and put a hand to her temple. "Oh, Elayne."  
  
Seizing the moment, Elayne folded Nynaeve into a hug. "Do you. Do you want me to Delve you? I mean, to find out if everything's okay?" She held her older friend at arms length and looked her up and down. She looked fine to Elayne's eyes. A little thin perhaps, a little pale. But fine otherwise.  
  
"Umm. c-could you?"  
  
"Of course." She placed both her hands on Nynaeve's head and embraced the True Source. She wove Spirit, Air and Water, and thin flows of Fire and Earth (one of Nynaeve's discoveries) and sent a probe into Nynaeve. She passed fatigue and weariness, then almost lost control at the power of her love for Lan. Steadying herself, she Delved deeper. And lost control completely at what she found.  
  
Snapping her hands back like she had received and electric shock, Elayne stared at Nynaeve. "What's." Nynaeve swallowed. "What's the matter?"  
  
"Erm." Elayne stammered uneasily. "Nothing's wrong exactly." She tried to smile, to reassure her, but she didn't think it worked very well. "I. I just have to. to go and check something out. I'll be back soon."  
  
She stood up and smiled again, making a dimple in her cheek. "Don't worry Nynaeve. I just need to be sure about what I found."  
  
And she left, leaving Nynaeve sat in stunned silence.  
  
As soon as she closed the door behind her, Elayne released the breath she didn't know she was holding. She couldn't tell Nynaeve without getting a second opinion. With a quick glance either way up and down the corridor, she turned left and strode away to find Romada, or any Yellow Sister. She had to be sure. She couldn't presume that her Delve had worked in the right way. But underneath the façade, she knew. She was ninety nine point nine percent positive about what she had found. Two heartbeats. Nynaeve was with child.  
  
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When Elayne left, Nynaeve laid back into her pillows, her mind racing with worry. What was it the Elayne had found? Surely the Queen of Andor would have told her if it was something terribly serious, like that she was dying, for example. She put both her hands on her stomach and tried to feel if there was anything there. She knew there wouldn't be, of course - not that she could feel anyway - but Elayne had got her mind spinning up allsorts. And the spinning didn't do anything for her headache. She wanted Lan.  
  
Why isn't he here? She thought. Bloody Queen of Andor and her bloody ways! If she hadn't sent him away he'd be here with me now! Burn the woman!  
  
Sighing, she closed her eyes and tried not to think about Elayne or anything along the lines of disease or Healing. Instead, she turned her mind back to the time in Tear when she and Lan used to take midnight strolls together. That was before the time they admitted their love for one another could be. Thoughts of Lan drifted through her mind. The first time she set eyes upon his stony face. The first time he called her 'Mashiara', the first time they kissed, the first time they. She drifted off to sleep with a smile on her face.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Screaming as someone threw a bucket of cold water over her head, Nynaeve sat up in bed. She was met not by wet liquid, but by Romada pulling her hands away from Nynaeve's head with a look of impatience. She also saw Elayne, Egwene and more to her liking, Lan, crowded around her bed.  
  
She stared wide-eyed at her husband and he sat down next to her on the bed and kissed her tenderly on the lips. Then he took her hand and fingered the moonstone ring, finally letting his hand rest so it was enclosing hers.  
  
"W-What's going on?" she asked him, suddenly scared. But she knew the reason why the Yellow Sister was there.  
  
"Romada is going to Delve you, to find out what's wrong," he said, kissing her cheek.  
  
"Well, I was trying, until you got all smoochy," the hard faced woman said. "I haven't got all day you know-" she cut off with a quick glance at Egwene, who just stood calmly in her seven striped stole and dark emerald dress. "Sorry, mother," she added. "Now, if you will excuse me, al'Lan, I have a patient to attend to."  
  
He shifted away slightly, but kept a firm grip on Nynaeve's hand.  
  
Nynaeve's body was shaking so much she didn't even notice the pain in her head. She closed her eyes, ready for the cold shower. She squeezed her husband's hand and he squeezed hers back. Then the spine freezing feeling came and she felt like her blood was rushing ice. Then it was gone.  
  
She opened her eyes and the pain came back to her temples. She groaned at it, and Romada was there in an instant, hands on Nynaeve's head. And then there was no pain.  
  
"Thank you," she murmured. She searched Romada's Aes Sedai face for any sign of what her Delve had found, but discovered nothing. "What did you find?" Her voice was surprisingly level, she was pleased to hear.  
  
She saw the grey haired woman weave flows of Air around them both and also Elayne and Egwene. Nynaeve looked pointedly at Lan. "I think it'll be better if he hears this from you," Romada said, following her glance.  
  
"What is it? Will you please tell me?"  
  
"Nynaeve," Elayne spoke up. "When I Delved you before I discovered something. I had to get a second opinion because my weaves aren't always the best concerning Healing, and I couldn't tell you if it wasn't true. But I think Romada has confirmed my suspicions. Nynaeve, I found two heartbeats. You're pregnant. You're having Lan's child."  
  
Egwene, forgetting her Amyrlin dignity, rushed at Nynaeve with open arms, saying "Congratulations! I'm so pleased for you both! I -" She cut off, realising that Lan was sitting calmly, watching them with no idea what they were talking about. "Nynaeve, you should tell him now. He'll be wondering. Nynaeve?"  
  
Egwene's previous Wisdom was not even looking at her, not acknowledging her at all.  
  
"Nynaeve?" Elayne said strongly, waving a beringed hand in front of her face. Nynaeve blinked and said, "Can you leave us please? I need to talk to my husband alone."  
  
Elayne hugged her with a wide smile, which she returned whole- heartedly. Romada unravelled her weaves, touched Nynaeve's arm whispering, "Congratulations," and with a final hug from Egwene, the three visitors left, leaving Nynaeve feeling like a nervous novice girl unsure of how to tell her teachers that she hadn't practised channelling all week.  
  
"I take it you're not dying then?" Lan asked. She looked at him and, to her mortal embarrassment, blushed. He laughed and pulled her close to him, stroking a few strands of loose hair from her face. "Are you going to tell me or do I have to guess?"  
  
"I." She struggled to find the right words. She decided the easiest way was the simplest. "I'm pregnant."  
  
"What?" Lan looked shocked, disbelieving and unsure all at the same time.  
  
"I'm. I'm pregnant. I'm expecting. I'm with child. I'm -"  
  
Suddenly she felt her husband's lips on hers, stopping the words. His hands slid over her body, and when they eventually broke apart, she was completely out of breath. She could not suppress her smile.  
  
"I heard you the first time," he said, massaging her forehead with kisses. She put a hand on his chest and pushed him off. Smiling up at him she said, "Well, what do you think?"  
  
"I think you are the most beautiful woman in the entire world, and that I love you more than anything. And I think that if this child is half as inspiring and wonderful as you, it will be a gift to everyone. What do you think?"  
  
"Oh, I think I am the luckiest woman that has ever lived. And you are the most amazing man, warrior, friend, husband, lover, and you will be the most amazing father to this child. To our child."  
  
She took his hand in hers and placed it on her stomach. They smiled at each other, just taking in the realisation. As they leaned in to kiss, try as she might Nynaeve could not keep her girly giggles inside. She pressed her smiling lips to Lan's, closing her eyes and thinking about how much she wanted him and their child.  
  
She wondered if it - she didn't like to think of it as an 'it', but she obviously didn't know if it was a boy or a girl - would look like her or Lan. Unbidden, the image of the babe in her dream flashed infront of her eyes. She pulled away from her husband, all her happiness shattered.  
  
"What is it?" He asked.  
  
"The... My dream. The babe in it. What if... What if it was a premonition? I know," she swallowed, holding back tears of terror. "I know I don't have the foretelling but... Oh, Lan, I'm so, so scared. I'm over the moon, but at the same time I don't know what I'm thinking, or which way I'm going all of a sudden."  
  
With every word she spoke, the tears built up, and in the end she just surrendered and let them flow. She was not crying, at first, but the memories of the glazed-eyed babe, and the knowledge that she had a babe like that growing inside her, did nothing to ease her fears.  
  
She cried herself to sleep in Lan's arms. 


	5. Time Flys

Sorry I haven't written for ages and AGES, i've been so busy with school, module exams and everything (and I'm writing a book [or trying to] so that takes up time too). Anyway, hope you enjoy this, I had a brainwave recently about how I'm gonna finish this and it's quite good so I PROMISE I'll try to write more and quicker!!! Hana X  
  
Chapter 5  
  
Word about their news spread quickly, and soon Nynaeve and Lan couldn't walk anywhere in Tar Valon without random people congratulating them. Nynaeve secretly thought it was Elayne's doing - that girl had a mouth like a gleeman - but she didn't want to confront the Queen of Andor about such matters.  
  
Time seemed to speed up around her, and in what seemed like no time at all, Nynaeve began to show. No one except Lan noticed at first. At five months, she just looked like she'd eaten a bit too much. Two weeks later, and her dresses began to stretch over her stomach and breasts. Another fortnight later, and she had to have new dresses made. At six and a half months, it was obvious to even the most wool-headed stable boy that she was pregnant, also because of the fact that her favourite dress styles were tight clingy ones that hung to every curve and were extremely low necked. A month of uneasy sleep and an aching back followed. One night in particular stuck in Nynaeve's mind.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~FlashBack~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
It was dark when Nynaeve opened her eyes. The only sound was that of Lan's heavy breathing next to her on the bed. She gently lifted his arm from across her six-months pregnant stomach and wriggled out of the covers. Easing herself silently from the bed, she wondered what time it was. She rubbed her sore back. She didn't remember going to bed at all. She remembered falling asleep in the armchair in their room though.  
  
Her husband moved slightly and she froze, not wanting to wake him up. I guess I am not the only one who is always tired nowadays, she mused. She channelled a small candle alight and wove a delicate shield of Air around it so it didn't appear too bright. She found she was naked and blushed at the thought that Lan must have undressed her. She blushed again at the fact that she had actually blushed in the first place.  
  
So what if he has undressed me? She thought. We have been married for a year and more now, and we have done - she flushed even harder, until she thought her face would burn off.  
  
Lan shuffled again. Nynaeve eased open the door to their wash chamber, then closed it silently behind her before channelling on the lamps. She used Fire to heat the wash water that stood in a glazed pitcher until it was steaming. Then she poured it into the Sea Folk porcelain bowl. She washed her face and body, and then wet her hair. She had to wash it every day now that she was pregnant, because it was incredibly greasy and lank. Just as she was about to pour herbal shampoo onto her dripping locks, she heard the door open slowly and someone come in.  
  
"Did I wake you?" she asked Lan, who closed the door behind him.  
  
"No, I just woke up suddenly to find you were not there. It's okay," he said, seeing the sorry look on her face.  
  
He walked over to his wife and took the shampoo bottle from her. Then he leaned in and kissed her on the lips, just softly at first, wondering if she was in the mood for kissing. She was, it seemed, for in reply she put her arms around his neck and returned the kiss whole-heartedly.  
  
His mouth tasted so good! Why did she not do this more often? She realised they did actually do this often, but at that moment in time all she could think about was then and there, and that she wanted the kiss to go on forever.  
  
By the time they broke apart, Nynaeve's hair had started to dry a bit. Light, but he was a good kisser! Thorough but at the same time gentle.  
  
"What was that, my heart?" Lan murmured, kissing her neck, his strong arms wrapped round her swollen body.  
  
Nynaeve realised she must have spoken her last thoughts aloud. "I just said what a good kisser you are!" She laughed.  
  
Her husband straightened up, so he was towering well over her, and stared into her eyes, his icy blue ones so full of longing that she actually felt herself blushing. Only then did it really hit her that she was completely naked. She expected to feel her face burn up in flames, but if anything that realisation just made her calmer.  
  
"Do you think so?" He said quietly, never shifting his gaze a hair.  
  
"al'Lan Mandragoran, I have sworn on the Oath Rod never to speak one word that isn't true. So in that way, yes, I do think so. In the same way, whatever I say must be the complete truth. Like when I say I love you, with all my heart, for all of time. Do you understand?"  
  
He shifted his gaze then. He shifted it to complete blackness as he leaned in once more to kiss her tenderly. He understood. He understood better than she thought. When he said he loved her, he said it in the way that she did, by the oaths Accepted took on the Oath Rod on being raised to Aes Sedai. When he spoke to his wife about his love for her, he spoke as if he had actually taken the Oaths, speaking not one word that is not true. And it is true, he thought, still lost in the kiss. There are no words truer.  
  
A few minutes later when they had to breathe, Nynaeve smiled at her husband, not sure what she was expecting to see - a king as legendary as the Creator maybe, or a man so great people bowed when they heard his name - but she only saw the beautiful man she had fallen hopelessly in love with. His lips were slightly redder than usual from kissing but he looked no different otherwise.  
  
Well, he is a king, by rights, she thought, and there is no man greater so far as I'm concerned. She realised that her thoughts during the kiss were only reflecting what he actually was. Lan had not changed. He could not because he was already what Nynaeve wanted. Here, stood in front of her, was her perfect image of a man. Except he was not just an image. He was as real as she.  
  
Laughing softly to herself, she reached out for the bottle of shampoo, but Lan stilled her hand by putting his on her arm.  
  
"May I?" he asked.  
  
And so she found herself, five minutes later, sitting with her head back over the basin, with Lan massaging herbal lotion into her hair. Oh, but it was a glorious feeling! His strong hands were so gentle, so caressing, like a warm hug on a cold night. It took another ten minutes or so for him to complete the two washes and rinse all the lather out. By the time he finished, Nynaeve's scalp was tingling.  
  
He picked up a wash towel - hair towels were not big enough for all her hair - and wrapped it snugly around her head, enclosing her dripping locks. He also draped her blue satin robe around her; it only just fit her now, and he had to stretch his arms around her from behind to tie it.  
  
Nynaeve stood up and yelped as she slipped on the sopping floor. Lan was there in a heartbeat, scooping her up and sweeping her back into their bedchamber. He deposited her on the bed with a kiss and a soft word, and started to stride back towards the lighted room.  
  
She reached out to him, taking his hand in both of hers. "Leave it," she said simply.  
  
He turned to survey her and said slowly, "As you command, so do I obey."  
  
Laughing, she pulled him down to kiss her. "Then come and lie with me. We need to discuss baby names."  
  
As soon as their lips met however, Nynaeve got a sudden pain in her stomach. It felt like. but it couldn't be. And then just as suddenly as it had come, it disappeared. Instinctively she put a hand to the spot where it hurt, but felt nothing except the lumps and bumps of her child nestled safely in her womb.  
  
"What happened? Are you alright? Is the babe okay?" Lan asked.  
  
"I. I'm not sure. I think that it. I think it just kicked." She smiled suddenly, then found herself laughing with joy.  
  
The look on Lan's face suddenly made him a hundred times more gorgeous than Nynaeve had even seen him before. He looked proud and loving and plainly beautiful.  
  
The feeling came again. Quickly she grabbed his hand and held it where she felt the kick. As she felt it a third time, she looked into her husband's eyes and the love and excitement showed there made her draw breath. What Lan had just shown her in one glance, a lesser man could not convey in ten years. He actually seemed lost for words.  
  
"Light!" he whispered eventually. "That was the most beautiful thing I've ever felt, next to you, of course. Selene. Surely there is not better name for something so beautiful."  
  
"Selene. Yes, I like Selene. How are you so sure it's a girl?"  
  
"I. I don't know. I just am."  
  
He lifted her hand and fingered the moonstone ring. Then he lay down next to her on the bed and pulled her into him so her body fit perfectly with his, her back along his front. He wrapped his arms around her, hands on hers on her stomach. She snuggled back, the warmth of his body soothing her soul. And they lay there for the Light knew how long, Lan whispering and kissing her neck, Nynaeve just floating somewhere between heaven and paradise.  
  
She finally drifted off at dawn.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*End Flashback~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
A month later and she was forced by the Amyrlin herself to give up teaching. She spent her days wandering around the Tower grounds with Lan, or visiting Elayne in Caemlyn.  
  
*^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^*  
  
"I love you, Nynaeve," Lan said, kissing her softly. They were out in the Amyrlin's Gardens - Egwene had given them her permission of course - because in the Tower grounds they were frequently badgered about her health and that of their child. Here they had the gardens all to themselves.  
  
She put her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply. Being so short, and with her enlarged stomach, it was not easy, but Lan was strong and he held her in the air like she was as light as a feather.  
  
When he set her back down, she took his hand and pulled him down onto a carved bench engraved with lovers and tiny Lover's Knots. "I love you too, heart of my heart," she replied. She rested her head against his chest and they talked about how beautiful the gardens looked. All the while they talked, Lan held her close, his arms around her, his hands on her stomach.  
  
"I like those pink orchids," she said.  
  
"They are indeed beautiful, just like you," he replied.  
  
"You are incredibly sweet, Lan Mandragoran," she laughed. "I suppose in that way you are like these flowers too!"  
  
He laughed with her. "I thank you for comparing me to orchids!"  
  
Suddenly she felt the babe kick. Lan obviously felt it too, for he laughed again and kissed her head, saying "Does it not hurt when our child tries to break it's way out of you two months early?"  
  
"Yes, it is very painful, especially when it gets restless at night."  
  
"Is there anything I can do for you?" he asked.  
  
"Well, I wouldn't say no to a massage. That eases the pain tremendously." She put on her puppy dog face and smiled up at him. "Please?"  
  
Lan felt his heart melt when he looked into those innocent eyes. "How could I refuse such a tragic little face?" He leaned down and kissed her soft cheek, then began slowly rubbing her stomach. She laughed a lot because it tickled, but after that she concluded her husband must have magic hands, for the pain ceased almost immediately. She didn't tell him this however, because she loved his hands caressing her as much as she knew he loved it too.  
  
So they sat and passed many days this way. When she got hungry, Lan found an Accepted who brought food to them. When she got tired, he would produce a rug and they would lie down together in the early summer afternoons, talking, snuggling and kissing, sharing secrets and fears, dreams and desires. Nynaeve seldom got angry now that she didn't have any classes to teach. Her temper had dissolved greatly when she married Lan, but now that she was with child, it had altogether disappeared, something that Elayne frequently pointed out.  
  
*^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^**^*  
  
"Nynaeve, it is so unfair," Elayne said one hot summer's day. Nynaeve, seven and a half months pregnant, had Travelled to see her friend in the Royal Palace in Caemlyn, and they were sat inside, sipping iced fruit drinks.  
  
"What is?" she asked.  
  
"When I had my children I completely lost my figure. I put on so much weight you would think I had eaten all Caemlyn's food supplies in nine months. But you look completely gorgeous even with. well, you know."  
  
"A huge stomach? Oh yeah, Elayne, I'm not fat at all!" She laughed sarcastically. "I have gone from a dress size 6 to a size 14 in the space of two and a half months!" Today Nynaeve was wearing a dark sapphire dress made of light satin. It had embroidered flowers and little pearls and blue sapphires all over it, and was incredibly beautiful. The neck was extremely low - Elayne was shocked at how low Nynaeve wore her dresses - and it emphasized her bust, which had increased two sizes in pregnancy. For a heavily expecting woman, Nynaeve looked stunning. She wore her hair down so it flowed over her shoulders in dark waves, rippling to past her waist when she stood up.  
  
Elayne actually found herself feeling a little jealous when she remembered what she had looked like when she was expecting. "Yes, but do you have swollen ankles, swollen legs, swollen arms? I was so repulsed by what I looked like, I had to make Rand tell me a hundred times that he thought I was beautiful before I could stand in front of the mirror!"  
  
Nynaeve blushed slightly. "Well, Lan tells me that he thinks I am gorgeous every minute of every day, and even when I say I disagree, he just stresses it more strongly, and then he says he wants to prove it and then." She blushed harder, her cheeks reddening violently.  
  
Elayne smiled. "You know, he has really changed you. I remember a time about two years ago when you would get angry if he so much as said you looked nice, reading into it all manner of things that he didn't mean."  
  
"I- " Nynaeve started, with the merest trace of anger. "I just can't bring myself to be angry at all." She admitted, the edge in her voice disappearing. "My temper seems to have gone along with my waistline!"  
  
Elayne laughed. She stood up and went to give her friend a hug. "I think maybe mood swings for you have the opposite effect."  
  
It was Nynaeve's turn to laugh. "You mean because I had a temper in the first place, now the mood swings have had 'the opposite effect'?" The look of embarrassment and terror on Elayne's face made Nynaeve laugh harder. "It's okay, I can't be angry remember?! Oh Elayne, I may be pregnant but I'm not stupid. I think you're right. Maybe I'm no longer a temperamental person. I just don't seem to know which way is up and which down lately. I'm always so confused, and I haven't had a good night's sleep in ages. Was it like this for you?"  
  
"Yes, but at least you have Lan with you all day, every day. And every night for that matter, I suppose. I love Rand with all of my heart, but I couldn't help getting angry with him when his 'duties' kept him away from me. Light, I know he's the bloody Dragon Reborn, but surely he could have taken time out to be with his wife and unborn children. I told him that much, and he did try harder after that. You are so, so lucky to have Lan. He adores you no end, and his babe you are carrying means the world to him."  
  
Nynaeve blushed again. "Yes, I know he does. And I feel exactly the same way about him - though not the bit about the babe!" She laughed.  
  
Their general chit-chat continued for a while. They talked of husbands, children, Aes Sedai things, and the state of the nations. When Nynaeve finally got tired, Elayne wove a Gateway for her, into her bedchamber. Nynaeve eased herself out of her chair and thanked the Queen for the drink and the chat.  
  
"I'll come and see you next time," Elayne said as Nynaeve was about to step through. "Though I might not be able to for a few weeks. I have to go with Rand to sort out food supplies in Tear."  
  
Nynaeve laughed. "Good, because I don't think I'll be able to visit you in a few weeks." She patted her huge stomach. "I'll be eight and a half months pregnant by then! And from what you've told me, I'll have a job channeling too. I may even have to light my own lamps! Well, I'll get Lan to, of course!"  
  
Elayne laughed with her, then sobered and hugged her. "Take care of yourself. Let Lan do everything for you - I suspect he does now anyway - but still, be careful."  
  
"I will. Do not worry about me. Worry about Rand and your country. I'll be fine."  
  
With a last hug, Nynaeve stepped through the Gateway and once again arrived in her bedchamber, into Lan's awaiting arms.  
  
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	6. Prophecy

Does anyone remember me? Do I still have any fans out there at all? I'm so sorry it's been so long! I hope you enjoy this chapter, sorry its not very long but I had to get something up! Hana X  
  
Disclaimer – nope, don't own wot, Monsieur Jordan does! (except Romada who is mine forever and anon!)  
  
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As soon as the flickering slice of light disappeared, Nynaeve collapsed into a chair and sighed heavily.  
  
"Are you alright, my dear?" Lan asked.  
  
"Yes, I'm quite alright. Just tired. And fed up. Fed up of this babe." Lan looked so hurt she wished she hadn't said anything. "I didn't mean like that. It's just such a bind having to carry it around all the time like a weight permanently strapped to my front. Have you any idea how heavy this thing is?" She rubbed her stomach where the babe had begun to kick. She wondered if it had heard her. "I can't sleep, I can't walk for more than half an hour at a time without having to rest, my hair's completely disgusting and greasy, my skin is oily, I eat so much you'd think I had four babes inside me, not just one, and, basically, I'm so fat I sometimes wonder why it is you still feel the way you say you do about me." She breathed heavily. This child was really starting to hurt her with it's kicking.  
  
"Nynaeve, two things," her husband said to her, walking over and sitting on the arm of the chair. He took the hand that was rubbing her stomach and let his take over. "Firstly, you're right I have no idea what it's like carrying a child, having never been subject to the position before. But secondly, are you not still the same woman I fell in love with? Do you not think carrying our babe only makes me love you more? I know it can't be easy for you, and I have had experience with your sleeping positions during the night, but you are not fat and disgusting, your hair is not greasy and your skin is not oily." As if to prove this, he stroked his free hand over her cheek and then kissed it. "You are still the gorgeous woman who stole my heart all that time ago in Emond's Field. You are still the radiant beauty who I swore my love to. You are still my el'Nynaeve Mandragoran."  
  
Nynaeve just stared at him for the longest time. Then, slowly, all her fear, pain, confusion and despair seeped away, leaving only love and a sense of something like dependency. On Lan, she was sure this was, but she didn't know why.  
  
"You have an incredible way with words, al'Lan Mandragoran. You could make the fattest, ugliest woman in Andor sound like a queen. But don't tell Elayne I said that; you know what she'll think it's implying! Not that it is of course. Oh, I don't know. I just wish it'd all be over and I could just go to sleep and not wake until the morning."  
  
"It will. Only six weeks to go. I cannot get over how quickly the time has gone since Elayne and Romada told us you were with child."  
  
"I know, time flies when you're having fun. Or having a baby in my case!"  
  
Lan laughed and Nynaeve joined in. He really was a different man. Any child would be proud to have him as a father, and any mother proud to have him as her child's father, as Nynaeve was.  
  
Nynaeve had not been haunted by the glazed-eyed babe in her dreams for some months now, something which she was all too happy about. She had even stopped thinking of it all together and found it extremely difficult to conjure up the image again. Lan avoided asking her about her dreams, just in case, but he was pretty sure she would tell him if anything happened.  
  
In the next two weeks Nynaeve did nothing except lay around the Tower, dozing, ordering Novices around and watching Lan practice the sword. Elayne returned early from Tear and Travelled to Nynaeve and Egwene every day. She even brought her two babes along a couple of times. They were the cutest little things Nynaeve had ever seen. She had almost forgotten her time as Wisdom in Emond's Field, when she helped birth babies. She had of course thought all the babes adorable, but now, with the reality that she was about to have one very soon herself, Elayne's darlings looked like angels.  
  
In no time at all, Nynaeve's due date was only a week away. She looked and felt like a beach whale, and was about as much use. As Elayne had said, she had lost the ability to channel, and it was like losing all her limbs. She could do nothing except sit and be, and it pained her no end. She had to rely on Lan, Novices, and sometimes even herself to fetch and carry things she needed.  
  
One day Lan broke his arm after an awkward fall in the practise yards, and Nynaeve was utterly useless. She criticized the Healers and complained that they were not Weaving correctly, though in truth she was just jealous that they were curing her husband and not her. She was ratty and tired, her hair greasy and her body swollen. But on top of all this, a greater fear prayed upon her mind, and those of all people.  
  
The Dark One had once again broken free from his prison. It had been five years to the day since Nynaeve and Rand - or Lews Therin Telamon - had risked their lives and those of their entire armies to kill The Betrayer once and for all. But it had not worked correctly. For on that day, a new prophecy had been made, by none other than Moiraine.  
  
She had come back from another land, Nynaeve thought, to help her and Rand in their time of need. Or not. In the midst of battle, a door had appeared, from where Nynaeve couldn't tell. Moiraine, clad in her traditional pale blue, stepped out and glided through the chaos as if she had not a care in the world. She seemed not to even see the anarchy of war going on around her.  
  
And on reaching Nynaeve, the Blue Sister, presumed dead for more than ten years, wove flows of air and spirit and conjured up an image. Nynaeve couldn't it take it all in. She thought she must have been slain and was having visions in death, but that was not true. She wasn't sure whether to be scared or relieved, or both. Moiraine, alive? How could this be?  
  
But the image in front of Nynaeve halted all her fantasies. She was sure time had stopped and captured herself, the smaller woman and the hallucination up and held them there. Everything else ceased to be, and again she wondered whether something had somehow killed her and she was now dead and had passed to another place. But there in the back of her head she could still feel Lan, and that tiny portion of familiarity, something she was sure of, kept her from screaming insanity.  
  
She had not thought of the prophecy or the image for four years, and now it had once again painted itself across her eyes. A child, Moiraine had shown to her, a babe. It was a girl, dark ringlets flowing over a small, perfectly formed body. She was beautiful, but her eyes had a pain there too great to ever be put into words. They held no feeling, just a dull light, the embers of a dying fire. And as Nynaeve stared at her, transfixed, she changed. Not swiftly, but gradually. Her hair thinned and paled, her face grayed, and the kindling fire in her eyes was extinguished. Nynaeve found herself staring into the face of a ghost child, a small infant, a lifeless babe.  
  
Moiraine's voice was harsh and cold when she spoke, not at all like the melodious tones she used to speak in. Her words still rang clearly in Nynaeve's head.  
  
'Two and one,  
  
And all the same  
  
While one lives on  
  
One shall fade  
  
Her spirit awoken  
  
Whilst hers is broken  
  
He shall see, He shall weep  
  
And He shall face the re-born.  
  
For something so terrible as Death itself in form,  
  
A life that was not meant to be  
  
Born of a mother's loving  
  
Two breaths, then no more it seems.  
  
She will truly be  
  
Love for hate  
  
The beginning of the end  
  
A life for a death  
  
A life that was not meant to be.'  
  
Then Moiraine has vanished as suddenly as she had appeared, back through the gateway, never to be heard of again. Nynaeve had long wondered about the meaning of her riddle, but had given up all hope of ever discovering the truth. She didn't like things she couldn't do, and the resurfacing of this prophecy played on her agitated mind through out the last week of her pregnancy.  
  
But then six days later all previous worries disappeared when suddenly the spine freezing pain of a contraction gripped her body. She cried out for Lan and after four hours became immersed in an agonising – and what eventually would turn out to be a thirty three hour – labour.  
  
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OOOOh, as the BFG would say 'the thick plottens'!!!! (ie the plot thickens, geddit?!) Spooky, huh?! What do you think Moiraine was on about? Could it possibly have anything to do with Nynaeve or Lan or their unborn child?!!  
  
Too easy wasn't it? Of course it does! Stay tuned to find out what!  
  
Anyway, it's been WAY too long!!! I'm so sorry I haven't updated FOREVER, the truth is I lost interest in wot for a bit and started writing some lord of the rings fics, but hopefully now I'll be able to update a little more often!  
  
Saying that, the next chappie's gonna be l-o-n-g I think (for obvious reasons) and I hope you will keep waiting for me!  
  
Aah, its good to be back! Hana X  
  
So, did anyone like it? Have I still got whatever spark of talent I used to? You think so....? Well, there's a little button just below, you see it? Yes that one, and do you know what it does....?!!! ^_^ 


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